


Cookies, Wine and Kisses

by MossyBallerina



Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Holiday Fic Exchange, holiday fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2019-10-01 07:53:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,197
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17240384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MossyBallerina/pseuds/MossyBallerina
Summary: It's been a few months since the Archon was defeated and peace was brought to Andromeda. It's now Christmas time, the first Christmas in Andromeda, and Sara Ryder is determined to make it the perfect Christmas for her and her boyfriend, Reyes Vidal. Things don't exactly go to plan, but nothing is going to stop Sara from making it a Christmas to remember.





	Cookies, Wine and Kisses

**Author's Note:**

  * For [CelticGrace](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CelticGrace/gifts).



> Written for the 2018 Mass Effect Fanfiction Writers Secret Santa gift exchange, for CelcticGrace. The prompt was domestic fluff for Sara Ryder and Reyes Vidal, and I hope I did it justice!
> 
> Merry Christmas/Happy New Year!

The sounds of cheery Christmas music wafted down the halls of a small apartment as Sara Ryder stood in front of a Christmas tree, frowning. She’d had a hard time finding Christmas decorations, apparently that hadn’t exactly been top priority of things to bring on the Ark, and of course the holiday wasn’t celebrated in Andromeda.

She’d consulted Jaal about Angaran holidays and celebrations, and had borrowed a few ideas from him, but they didn’t really have a Christmas equivalent. So, the decorations on the tree were an odd mix of little sprigs of tinsel that she could scrounge up, a few slightly misshapen homemade ornaments and some local flowers she’d picked from around the area.

All in all, the result was… interesting. And not entirely aesthetically pleasing. Normally Sara wouldn’t even care, but this was their first real holiday in Andromeda. After all the chaos and trauma of their first several months in the galaxy, things were finally starting to stabilize. The vaults had been reset, Meridian had been found. The Archon had been defeated. There was peace, finally.

And even more than that, it was her first holiday with Reyes. Their relationship had hit a few rough patches, particularly with the revelation that he’d been the Charlatan all along, but they’d worked it out. And because of that, and because their relationship was still fairly new, Sara wanted this holiday to be perfect.

Sara was so absorbed in her thoughts that she didn’t even hear the footsteps coming up behind her until a pair of arms settled down over her shoulders. She jumped slightly at the surprise contact, but settled into the embrace, knowing exactly who it was.

“Hi,” she said.

“Hi yourself,” Reyes chuckled, the vibrations from his laugh rumbling through his chest, which was pressed against Sara’s back.

“You’re early,” she said. “I wasn’t expecting you for another hour or two.”

“Well, it _is_ Christmas,” Reyes said. “I figured Keema could handle business on Kadara for the rest of the day.”

“I’m glad you’re here,” Sara said, turning around to give Reyes a quick kiss. “Though, I was hoping to have the place a bit more decorated before you got here.”

“I like it how it is,” Reyes said, eyeing the sloppy, mismatched decorations thoughtfully. “There’s a certain… charm to it.”

Sara smacked his arm playfully. “You’re just saying that to flatter me because you want to get laid tonight.”

“Well, will it work?” Reyes asked, smirking.

Sara rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t quite hide her smile. “Maybe. If you’re good.”

“Oh, I’m _always_ good,” Reyes said, tugging at Sara’s hips as he growled.

Sara laughed and squirmed in his embrace. “Oh please, you’re practically the poster boy for naughty.”

“Naughty? I can show you naughty, if that’s what you want…” Reyes started pressing kisses against Sara’s neck and she bit her lip, a thrill running down her spine at the suggestiveness of his words and his unfairly sexy accent.

They’d really only been a couple for a few months, but it just felt _right_. Already, Sara’s fears about the Christmas decorations not matching had faded away, now that Reyes was here, and she wondered why she’d worried about it in the first place.

The decorations didn’t matter, even the presents sitting under the tree didn’t really matter, none of that was what Christmas was about. What mattered was _them_ , and their love for each other. This Christmas was about celebrating new life and new opportunities, it was about peace in Andromeda and all they’d achieved.

It was about second chances and fresh starts and the excitement of exploring a new relationship.

A timer beeped and Sara extricated herself from Reyes’ arms. “That’d be the oven, I’m making cookies.”

Reyes arched an eyebrow. “You bake? Human pathfinder, vanquisher of the Archon, savior of all Milky Way species, and now baker extraordinaire? What _don’t_ you do?”

Sara laughed as Reyes followed her into the kitchen. “I never said I baked _well_. This is my first time attempting it, actually, so if the cookies come out awful, don’t blame me.”

Sara opened the oven door, a puff of smoke escaping as she coughed and tried to swat it away. Scrunching up her face, she pulled the tray out and put in on the counter while Reyes turned off the oven.

“They’re burned,” she said. Despite her lack of baking experience and how she had _just_ told Reyes not to get too excited, she couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. In her head, she’d everything planned out perfectly. The apartment was going to be cozy and beautifully decorated, there were going to be delicious, freshly baked cookies, and when the time was right, she was going to surprise Reyes with a keycard to her apartment.

She thought it was time to move their relationship along, go to the next level. Instead of dividing their time between Kadara, where Reyes managed things as the Charlatan, and Port Meridian, where Sara continued to oversee the development of the human colony, it would be nice to have a home. Together. Some place which was for the _both_ of them.

“I’m sure they’re not that bad,” Reyes said, picking up a cookie and shoving it into his mouth.

Sara tentatively watched his face, looking for any sign of how he felt about it. After a moment, he swallowed.

“You know, I like the bit of char,” he said. “It adds depth to the flavor.”

Sara laughed. “That bad, huh?”

“I’m not kidding!” Reyes said. “Blackened chocolate chip cookies. It has a certain… _oomph_ to it.” He kissed his fingers to emphasize his point.

Giving him an odd look, Sara picked up one of the still-hot cookies from the tray and gave it a tentative bite. “Hmm. Well, once you get past the burned bottoms, I guess these aren’t too bad.”

“See?” Reyes said. “What did I tell you. Baker extraordinaire.”

Sara laughed. “Well, I appreciate your vote of confidence, but I think I’ll hold off on opening my own bakery.”

“Are you alright?” Reyes said, his tone serious for the first time since he’d gotten there. “You seem a bit… subdued.”

“I’m fine, yeah,” Sara said. “I just… this is our first Christmas together. Not just that, but our first Christmas in _Andromeda_. I wanted it to be special.”

“You’re here,” Reyes said, grabbing her hands. “I’m here. Isn’t that special enough?”

Sara’s lips twitched into a smile. “I guess you’re right.”

“Come,” Reyes said. “I brought an _excellent_ bottle of red wine. Great vintage year. Smooth taste, fruity overtones, smoky undertones. Mmm.”

Sara laughed. “You think you’re so suave and sexy, but the moment you start talking about alcohol, you just sound like a dork.”

“Hey!” Reyes said. “I _am_ suave and sexy. Can’t a man be knowledgeable about the finer things in life? Women, alcohol, wealth… what’s not to like?”

Sara shook her head as she grabbed a knife to try and cut off some of the burned bits on the bottoms of the cookies. “Giant. Dork.”

Reyes scoffed dramatically, and wrapped his hands around Sara’s waist. “I bet I can get you to change your mind… I’ll show you exactly how suave I can be.” He started trailing kisses down Sara’s neck and she shivered slightly.

“Reyes. I have a knife in my hands,” she said. “Unless you want to end this holiday with one or both of us seriously injured, I suggest you wait to seduce me until _after_ I’ve put the knife down.”

Reyes chuckled but backed away. “Fine. But can you blame a man for trying? I don’t see you often enough.”

“I know,” Sara said. “Still. No stabby.”

Before too long, Sara had shaved the burned bits off as best she could, leaving slightly misshapen, but better tasting, cookies.

“Come, I’ll pour us a glass of wine,” Reyes said. “And then we can exchange gifts, I can’t wait to see you in yours.”

“Oh?” Sara said, raising an eyebrow. “Why am I suspicious? Should I be expecting scandalously skimpy lingerie?”

Reyes laughed. “No, but you shouldn’t give me ideas.” He looked her up and down, a hungry look in his eyes, and Sara couldn’t help but shudder a little in anticipation. There was something so enthralling about Reyes, she couldn’t help but be drawn to him, and to know that he wanted her was intoxicating.

Once the wine was poured, Sara grabbed her glass and she and Reyes headed over to the tree, her heart starting to beat quickly in nervous anticipation. She’d thought long and hard about what to get Reyes—he wasn’t exactly a guy who wanted for much, and he worked as a _smuggler_. What he did want but didn’t have he was used to finding other ways of acquiring.

But in a tiny box under the tree was a spare keycard to Sara’s apartment in Meridian. Sure, Reyes was over a lot, but it was _her_ apartment, and he was just a visitor. She wanted it to start to feel like _their_ apartment. Something they could share together.

“Alright, here we are.” Reyes pulled a long, slender box out from under the tree, and it struck Sara that he was _nervous_. Reyes was many things, but Sara couldn’t recall ever seeing him nervous.

Sara pulled off the wrapping paper and opened the lid, revealing a beautiful sapphire and silver necklace nestled in on a silk bed.

“I know, you don’t really wear jewelry,” Reyes said, wringing his hands slightly. “But… I thought it would match your complexion. And you know I like the finer things in life. I was hoping perhaps I could share more of that with you, take you out to some finer establishments. Now that the war with the Kett is over, I think we both deserve it. But you especially.”

Sara shook her head, speechless for a moment. “Reyes, this is… beautiful. I love it. Everything about it.”

He grinned, and gestured for Sara to turn around so he could put it on her. The necklace felt heavy and cool as it settled against her collarbones, and she didn’t even care that it clashed horribly with her plain tank top, cargo pants and messy ponytail. She loved it.

“Thank you,” she said, leaning over to kiss Reyes. “Now, for your present.” Nervously licking her lips, she pulled out the small box and handed it over to him. Reyes didn’t say anything, just gave her an inquisitive look as he tore off the wrapping paper and opened the box. When he didn’t say anything even then, Sara hesitantly spoke up.

“It’s… a keycard to my apartment,” she said. “I know you’re over here a lot anyways, but I want you to feel like this is _your_ apartment, too. And… maybe move towards moving in together.”

“Thank you,” Reyes said, his voice full of genuine emotion. “This… means a lot, Sara. I want nothing more than for our relationship to continue to grow and evolve. I love you, Sara.”

“I love you too, Reyes,” Sara said, beaming from relief and excitement.

“Come here,” Reyes said, and Sara scooted over so she could properly kiss him.

After a moment, Sara pulled away. “I’m going to go get some more wine. Don’t go anywhere.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Reyes promised. “Refill my glass?”

Smiling to herself, Sara took the glasses into the kitchen and topped them up. Okay, so maybe the Christmas hadn’t gone exactly according to plan, the decorations weren’t perfect and the cookies were slightly burned, but they had some damn fine wine. And with the burned bits scraped off, the cookies really were quite good. And most importantly, they had each _other_.

Tomorrow, they’d be celebrating with Scott and the Tempest crew, there was a big party planned. But for tonight, it was just them, and that was exactly how Sara liked it. Maybe things didn’t need to be picture-perfect on the outside for it to still be pretty wonderful.

An evening spent cuddling and kissing while sipping on some great wine and eating some decent, if slightly charred, cookies was an evening well-spent, as far as Sara was concerned. No frills, nothing complicated or fancy, just… them. And the start of their new life together, as their relationship grew more serious.

They had a whole _galaxy_ at their fingertips. Things in Andromeda had gotten off to a rough start, and Reyes hiding the fact that he was the Charlatan had nearly destroyed their relationship. But now the Kett were gone, there was peace with the Angarans, and her relationship with Reyes was stronger than ever.

No more secrets, no more war, no more taking the little things for granted. After Christmas was the new year, and they were both ready to move things forward in their relationship. Sara couldn’t wait to see what it would bring.

Padding back into the living room, where Reyes sat, Sara handed him his glass of wine and bent down to kiss him on the cheek. “Merry Christmas, Reyes.”

Reyes smiled at Sara as she sat down next to him, his eyes twinkling with merriment. “Merry Christmas, Sara.”


End file.
